England Guide
East Anglia
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The Norfolk Broads
Three rivers – the Yare, Waveney and Bure – meander across the flatlands to the east of Norwich, converging on Breydon Water before flowing into the sea at Great Yarmouth. In places these rivers swell into wide expanses of water known as "broads", which for years were thought to be natural lakes. In fact they're the result of extensive peat cutting, several centuries of accumulated diggings made in a region where wood was scarce and peat a valuable source of energy. The pits flooded when sea levels rose in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries to create the Norfolk Broads ( 
www.broads-authority.gov.uk ), now one of the most important wetlands in Europe – a haven for kingfishers, grebes and warblers – and the county's major tourist attraction.
The best way to see the Broads is by boat, and you could happily spend a week exploring the 125 miles of lock-free navigable waterways, visiting the various churches, pubs and windmills en route. Of the many boat rental companies, Blakes Holiday Boating ( 
0870/220 2498, www.blakes.co.uk ) and Broads Tours Ltd ( 01603/782 207, www.broads.co.uk ) both have rental outlets at Wroxham, seven miles northeast of Norwich and easy to reach by train, bus and car. Prices for cruisers start at around £700 a week for four people in peak season.
There are Broads Authority bike rental points dotted all over the region, and walkers might consider the 56-mile Weavers' Way, which winds through the Broads on its way from Cromer to Great Yarmouth.
One of the Broads' major sights is Toad Hole Cottage (June– Sept daily 9.30am–6pm; April, May & Oct Mon– Fri 10.30am–1pm & 1.30–5pm, Sat & Sun 10.30am–5pm; free), an old eel catcher's at How Hill, near Ludham, six miles east of Wroxham. Behind the cottage is the narrow River Ant, where the Electric Eel runs wildlife-viewing boat trips (June– Sept daily 10am–5pm, every hour; 1hr; £4.50; 01692/678 763). Another enjoyable boat trip is on the Helen of Ranworth, a former reed lighter that runs out into the Broads from Ranworth, twelve miles east of Norwich. (Easter– Oct 1 daily; 2hr; £5.50; 01603/270 453).